"Obviously the difference in the game for us," Celtics head coach Brad Stevens
said. "We shared the ball pretty well with our team, and theirs."

Brooklyn beat the Celtics, 85-79, in the initial showdown in Boston on Jan.
26.

Kevin Garnett missed his fourth straight game due to back spasms. He did not
make the trip to Boston to face his former team.

Pierce, the second leading scorer in Boston history, spent 15 seasons as a
Celtic and Garnett joined him for six of those years. Both were integral parts
in helping Boston win its 17th NBA title in 2008. They were sent to Brooklyn
as part of a draft night trade during the offseason.

Pierce finished with 10 points on 4-of-11 shooting.

Jeff Green netted 15 points, while Jerryd Bayless added 14 points and six
boards for Boston, which had dropped seven of its last eight coming in.

Joe Johnson tallied 21 points and seven rebounds for the Nets, who had their
four-game winning streak snapped and fell back to .500 two days after going
over for the first time this season.

The Celtics were up 64-46 early in the third following Kris Humphries' layup,
but Brooklyn countered with an 18-6 run to get back in it. Consecutive three-
point plays by Andrei Kirilenko and Marcus Thornton capped the surge and made
it 70-68.

Boston, though, closed the third on an 8-2 spurt. Two Chris Johnson free
throws concluded the flurry and gave the hosts a 78-70 cushion going into the
fourth.

The Celtics led by as many as 12 in the final frame before cruising to the
win.

Boston was up 26-20 after a quarter of play and 53-41 at the break.

Game Notes

The Celtics shot 44.3 percent (31-of-70) from the floor ... The Nets tallied
26 points off the Boston turnovers ... Brooklyn was just 4-of-30 (13.3
percent) from beyond the arc.